HP: The Arcane Thief

A.N.: You had better savour every word.

....

Chapter 83

*BAAAAM*

The bludger was thrown with such a force that Axel was pushed back a few feet with the recoil of just the force he had put into it. Add to that the force it already had, and you could tell that George Weasley's fate had been sealed.

*SPAT* *CRACK*

The twin never stood a chance at dodging it. Hell, he might not even have seen it coming, while trying to screw Axel over by hitting him with a spell from behind like a coward. The Bludger came to him too fast. It was like an unstoppable demolisher, aimed by a master shooter. It first hit Weasley's wand, snapping it off, then it hit his hand, causing several fractures. And then it hit his face, taking him off his broom for a ride.

"Happy Halloween." Said Axel, returning the words the twins had said to him, finally completing his revenge.

"WHAT?!" Shouted Lee, and everyone, everyone who was watching the match stood up from their seats, including Lee, Mcgonagall, and even the occupants of the VIP box.

Everything happened too fast. For a moment, it looked like Axel was going to be hit by either that bludger, or a spell, and in the next moment, he had pulled this absolutely badass roll, which hit George Weasley with the force of a cannonball.

"OUCH! THAT MUST HAVE HURT! WE HAVE A MAN DOWN! PROFESSOR! QUICKLY SAVE HIM!"

People couldn't even see when the Twin got hurt, let alone where and how bad the injury was. Para-healers were quickly called, who promptly took away the Weasley Twin while giving an ok sign, signifying that he will be fine. When it was confirmed that George will live, Lee continued the commentary.

"I don't think I can believe my eyes. What happened just now?!" Questioned Lee. This kind of move was way above his comprehension. He had seen what had happened, of course, but he was still having trouble believing someone had really done what he had seen. Everyone else also had the same reaction. They were all waiting for the replay.

But, their minds glitched further when they saw Axel raising his hand in the air in a gesture that had become very familiar to everyone. It was only then did they realize: The mf has even gotten the snitch?!

"HOW IN MERLINS BARMY HEAD DID THE SNITCH GET THERE?! HUNT SOMEHOW ALSO HAS THE SNITCH IN HAND RIGHT NOW! WHAT EXACTLY JUST HAPPENED?! REPLAY IT FAST!"

Soon, the footage was replayed, which showed in slow motion exactly how Axel caught the bludger, turned using its momentum to catch the snitch, and then redirected the Bludger straight at Weasley, while upside down. And finally, it showed him looking down at George and uttering the words, "Happy Halloween."

"""""WOOOOAAAAHHHHH""""" The spectators had various reactions towards this savagery.

"WHAT WAS THAT?! IS THAT EVEN HUMANLY POSSIBLE?! THAT WAS HANDS DOWN, THE COOLEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN! AND THE MOST MERCILESS! HE UTTERLY DECIMATED GEORGE! That Throw was personal, as were those words, Happy Halloween, clearly as revenge for their prank past night. Merlin's pants! Remind me to never get on this guy's bad side. Wait, will he be fouled for it or not?"

Yep, that WAS personal, and Axel didn't regret it one bit. Releasing the snitch, he quietly waited as Madam Hooch discussed with a few experts on the ground about what decisions to make for what had just happened. Along with Axel, everyone else also waited with baited breaths. Looks like no one wanted him to leave anymore.

Soon, Madam Hooch announced her decision.

"And it would seem like Madam Hooch has made the decision! AXEL STAYS ON THE FIELD WHILE THE TWINS HAVE BEEN DISQUALIFIED! What an absolute chad, doing something like that and still playing on the field!"

Turns out, Axel hadn't commited any foul by critically injuring another player with a Bludger when he was not even a Beater. It would have been a foul if he had used the Beater's bat, but understandably, there are no rules for what to do when a player catches the Bludger by hand and uses it to injure the Beater instead.

*CHEERS*

Deafening cheers came from the audience, who didn't want to miss even a little bit of time watching this genius play.

"""""AXEL! AXEL! AXEL! AXEL!"""""

Sitting on his broomstick with the snitch still in his hand, Axel looked at the crowd that was chanting his name and felt the adrenaline pumping.

"Is this enough?"

He had gone and done it now. He had broken free of some of the faux mediocrity he had shrouded himself in. And he had to admit, it felt great, addicting, even. But he knew that this was the limit. He was not strong enough to afford revealing more for now.

But…

"One day." He decided. One day, he'll be at the top, and won't be afraid to show it.

…

On the other hand, inside the VVIP box, Bellatrix struggled against the ropes she had been bound into. "Andi, don't be ridiculous. Are you seriously going to have me call guards on my own sister?" she asked, her eyes on Axel.

Andromeda, who was currently holding two wands in her hands right now, sighed. "And who forced me to do it? You would have killed those two if I hadn't bound you."

"Not before torturing them to insanity! And those two cheeky fuckers would have deserved it!"

Andromeda winced at the statement, and the ropes around Bellatrix tightened. "No one. Absolutely no one deserves getting tortured to insanity, Bella! And I am the one being ridiculous, she says," said Andromeda, looking at the ceiling.

At Andromeda's outburst, Bellatrix bit her tongue, recalling her brother-in-law in Saint Mungos, who had been tortured to insanity. She had been out of line.

(She was being a bad girl, and she needs punishment.)

"I'm sorry. I didn't actually mean it…" she said, looking away.

Andromeda shook her head, "We both know you did," she said in slight annoyance. That's the thing with Bella. Once she gets attached, there are no boundaries she wouldn't cross for that person, right or wrong be damned, consequences be damned.

Andromeda sighed, recalling what had happened earlier here.

—Flashback—

"What the fuck?! Who do they think they're laughing at?!" Shouted Bellatrix, throwing away her popcorn.

Axel's clip had just been shown on the big screens, and as expected, Bellatrix had gone berserk.

"That Lee guy and those twins! I'm going to kill them! And Rose needs some serious spanking as well! As for those who are laughing, I'll ban them from all Quidditch stadiums in Britain!"

"Calm down, Bella. These things happen sometimes. Don't take extreme measures. We have to deal with this smartly. " said Andromeda, not really surprised. She was only cursing whoever had the brilliant idea of showing these clips here.

"This IS the smart thing to do," said Bella. "Anyone who goes against Axel dies."

Andromeda shook her head in regret. That is exactly what she had been worried about.

Thankfully, the match started, distracting Bellatrix. Though Andromeda couldn't watch. She knew exactly how bad Axel's condition had been. So she was not hopeful.

But…

*CHEERS*

"WOW! YES! YES! YES! HE DID IT! HE DID IT!"

But when she heard the crowd making noise and her sister, the dignified Minister of Magic, jumping up and down like a little girl, Andromeda was left flabbergasted.

"H-How…?" She questioned, unable to believe her eyes. How did Axel recover perfectly from his previous condition? It was already surprising enough that he hadn't gone mad after that torture, then it was surprising enough that he had been managing to do great despite those injuries, and then it was surprising enough that he actually seemed to have recovered.

But… doing something like this… Flying with such grace and catching the snitch with such precision. Andromeda had to accept it now. Miracles do happen… at least for certain people.

Just when she was feeling relieved thinking that her sister won't be causing any trouble today, those fools started targeting Axel, once again setting Bella off again and again for the rest of the match, which led to the current situation, where she's bound to the chair.

Bellatrix once again struggled with her ropes, "At least let me celebrate! He was so brilliant today…" she said, sighing fondly. His father would be proud.

"That he was," Andromeda agreed. She hadn't seen anyone as skilled as Axel. Recalling how the boy had looked at his hands at that hospital bed, she realized the deep meaning behind his ironic and hopeless look when he had found out his hands along with his body were useless. He had just experienced something which would drive anyone else insane and then he had to face the fact that he had just been stripped of what he was best at. Stripped of qualities which defined him.

She could only imagine how strong his mental state must be, to not waste even a single moment moping around and instead trying his best to move forward.

…

Meanwhile, inside the other VVIP box.

Enzo ate his popcorn, while laughing, "Damn! That was fucking awesome!" He declared. Even his mother didn't scold him about the language this time like she does.

Alessandro sipped his martini (the drink), looking at Axel in approval, "There's no doubt about it. That guy is a Top G. Trashed the whole team single-handedly and even returned the damage multiple folds."

Enzo nodded, "Did you see that throw? No mercy! He's one of us. No wonder little sis fell for him."

"I did NOT fall for him. I just said he's interesting!" Said Martina, coming out of her thoughts. She had been really worried about Axel just now. To begin with, he was already tired from the fight last night and in no shape to play. And then his wand had also been broken, meaning he couldn't have defended himself even if he wanted to.

Francesca looked at her, and she could clearly tell her daughter genuinely cared for the boy.

Her gaze turned to Axel, judging him critically. "His injuries from last time seem to have healed perfectly, he has a prime physique, and he is academically at the top of his class, and has an unseen amount of skills. He certainly surpasses the criteria."

"Why does nobody listen?! He is my friend!" Exclaimed Martina, but she really was considering inviting Axel over for a different reason: his wand.

"We hear you, Martini. We hear you. But you're turning 16, and you haven't even been engaged yet," said her father.

In Mafia families, it was the norm for their children to be engaged in their childhood, as in by the age of 12. It's a way of establishing relationships among their groups and saying, 'Peace bro, we ain't fighting each other no more. Let's find someone else to mess with together.'

But Martina hadn't been engaged yet. One, because Martina strongly denied it, and two, no one can mess with the Valentinos. They try, of course, but it's always futile. So, even if she's unaware, her engagement is turning into something of a big deal. The wealth and power of the Valentino Family is immeasurable and it's common knowledge that Martina's is the center of the Valentino Family. Whoever marries her will have the entire Valentino Family as their backing.

That's why, all the Mafia families are desperately fighting to have her marry into their family, causing a headache to the Valentinos. To decrease the competition, they're even spreading all sorts of rumors, like there's something wrong with her and that's why she hasn't been engaged yet or that she likes girls.

So, her family is currently looking for suitable candidates, to fix up the engagement and stop these hyenas who are eyeing their family. Martina, of course, is unaware of all this, lest she forces herself to get engaged to someone.

"Don't bring up my engagement, dad. I'm not thinking about it until it's absolutely necessary," said Martina, lost in thought. When his wand had been broken, Axel had seemed really down. It was the first time she had seen him care so much about something. So, she had gotten a bit too ahead of herself when saying that she could help him fix it by mistake, making Axel think that she could fix it. Before she could clarify, they had to run due to Akiko's warning. By the time she had turned around to see Axel, he had already gone.

It's not a lie that she's great at making wands and that she could 'help' him fix it, but, Wandlore is a subject that can only be learnt through time and experience. And fixing his wand… it's a bit risky for her. So, asking for her teacher's help would be for the best since it's guaranteed it will be fixed. There's only one problem: Her teacher doesn't do anything for outsiders.

So, Martina looked at her mom, "Mom, Axel's wand has been damaged..."

Yep, it's her mom. Her mom's family specializes in magical weapons. This was also the source of Axel's knife. Only, they don't share them with outsiders.

"Specifications?" Asked her mother.

"Beechwood, 12 inches, and Cherub hair as its core. There's critical damage to the wood and slight damage to the Cherub core."

Her mother raised an eyebrow, "Cherub hair? No wonder. But beechwood doesn't seem to suit him. Does he have a problem with his control?" Asked her mother, evaluating Axel further based on his wand.

Martina scratched her cheek at her mom's 'No wonder' comment. Cherub wand users are usually known to be very charming and charismatic. Even if she said that that is not the reason why she's Axel's friend, it's not like anyone in here is going to believe her. As for the matter of Beechwood not suiting him, Beechwood focuses on control more than power.

"No, his control is good, too good, infact. But it used to be very bad before his injuries were healed so it used to suit him well. I was thinking we could replace the wood, along with other changes," she replied.

Her mom's eyebrows raised further. "Even 'those' changes?"

Martina sighed, knowing what they were going to think, but she had to do this. Axel had saved her life. And just yesterday, saved the school. It's the least she can do.

"Yes mom, I want the best. But it's really not what you think, sigh..."

All three other Valentinos in the room looked at Martina, making her feel like dying out of mortification. Finally, her mother gave out her verdict. "Fine, invite him over for Christmas. I'll see what I can do," she said with a smile.

...

A.N.: Where will Axel go? Greengrass or Valentino? There was a vote on Patreon.

Next Chapter: End, *Snap*: Axel and Daphne

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